Hernandez part of a growing trend

Wednesday

Jun 26, 2013 at 10:22 PM

The Massachusetts State Police made it official Wednesday: Aaron Hernandez was arrested for the murder of Odin Lloyd.

Jason Queen

The Massachusetts State Police made it official Wednesday: Aaron Hernandez was arrested for the murder of Odin Lloyd.This case has been odd for over a week now, mainly for two reasons. First of all, why would Hernandez, a young stud playing for one of the best professional sports franchises in the world be associated with a homicide? And, what took the police so long to haul him in?The first question in the most puzzling. Hernandez, a 23-year-old tight end who just signed a 5-year, $40 million deal with the New England Patriots, had his whole life ahead of him. When you can play professional football at a high level, you've got it made. It can be said, you may not have it made for long. The chances of being injured are far greater in football, and careers don't stretch out for two decades. But I think I could make $40 million hold up for a while.New evidence seemed to seep out almost daily. Destroyed home security systems and cell phones, surveillance video, a past history of violence. However, days seemed to drag on without an arrest, and with very little police acknowledgement of any facts in the case.I have never understood this theory, and I often get frustrated when local crimes go unsolved for long periods. In Davidson County, including Lexington and Thomasville, homicides are often followed by long stretches of silence by law enforcement. It seems like the only murders that are solved are the ones where eyewitnesses can identify the offender, and the police can track that person down. Otherwise, cases go cold and the police don't release a whole lot of information.This baffles me. It seems to me, if the police are having a hard time scratching up leads in a case, asking for the public's help can be a good thing. Maybe someone saw something unusual, maybe they heard someone talking about their involvement, you never know.The police didn't have to ask the public for much help in the Hernandez case. Evidence was extremely easy to come by between Lloyd's body and Hernandez' home. The only thing Hernandez forgot to do was leave a trail of his playing cards from the spot the body was found to his front door.So why would a professional athlete, in the prime of his career, commit a murder? Judging by the things Hernandez allegedly has done in his past, he obviously thought he was invincible. He was rumored to be involved in a shooting while in college at Florida, then allegedly shot a man in February in Florida. Yet, there he was, a free man. He thought he could do anything he wanted and get away with it, simply because he is a big-time pro athlete.This is unfortunately very common among athletes. They are often allowed to meet lower standards in school, simply so they can remain eligible to play sports and move on to the next level. Athletes are treated like royalty in some cases, and they truly are above the law. There are two local athletes that I had the privilege to cover over the last five years, and they appeared to be on their way to greatness. But once they left high school, they had to meet higher standards, and they weren't prepared for it. Neither one is at his original college, both are out of sports altogether, and both appear to have blown their shot at athletic stardom.Aaron Hernandez thought he could get away with anything and, for the last several years, that proved to be true. It doesn't appear, at the moment, that he can get away with murder.Jason Queen can be reached at 249-3981, ext. 220, or jason.queen@the-dispatch.com.

Never miss a story

Choose the plan that's right for you.
Digital access or digital and print delivery.